Deceptively Delicate: Eriogonum grande-rubescens

California native plants often surprise me. Eriogonum grande var. rubescens looks so delicate and cute, but it is is a solid performer in the garden. It is far from delicate. I remember when I first saw it and thought, "what a flimsy little plant", and I wondered how many plants would it take to form a nice display? It didn't seem possible that a plant with such a dainty flower could ever amount to much. I was wrong.

photo by Pete Veilleux, East Bay Wilds

Such a big name for such a petite plant! Eriogonum grande rubescens, after much research the origin of the name, "grande" remains a mystery to me. The peduncles of the species Eriogonum grande can reach 3-5 feet and were, indeed, "grande", but not so with this petite variety. The blooming flowers of a large number of Eriogonum grande var rubescens is impressive so I will call that "grande" instead! 

This plant is native to the three of the Channel Islands, San Miguel, Santa Cruz, and Santa Rosa. It blooms for a long time, starting at the end of May, in my garden, and through the summer and into the fall. The books say full sun, but I have quite a few in dappled shade and they are doing fine, although, they are not as floriferous as the plants in full sun. It does tend to seed into the sunnier areas. I have it in sandy loam, but it seems tolerant of a wide range of conditions, as it also grew well in full sun in a dg path. I have read it tolerates clay as well as long as it drains. It likes well-drained soil on the drier side, but it doesn't die off like some CA natives with summer water. On the other hand, once established, it can survive without additional water. Like I mentioned, this is a deceptively tough plant! 

       Eriogonum grande var. rubescens                                                                                    S. Reeve

If the buckwheat is happy it will reseed and carpet the area with a weed-suppressing amount of baby plants. These all form basal foliage through the winter and early spring. The plant itself is about a foot across and two feet tall when it blooms. The whitish leaf petioles originate in the center of the plant and end in roundish or oval deep green to slightly teal-colored leaves with wavy margins. The green upper leaves become progressively greyer as the dry season goes on. The undersides of the leaves are startlingly white and tomentose. As this plant is naturally found on seaside cliffs I imagine this indumentum keeps the ocean winds from dehydrating the plant, and the white color helps the plant reflect sunlight bouncing off of the rocks.  As an ecologist, I wonder if fog drip from the shiny top of the leaf is collected by the downy hairs underneath to help with hydrating the plant? 

    Eriogonum grande var. rubescens                                                                                                      S. Reeve

Around May they send up a curiously inflated, perfectly round, naked stem, that branches almost perpendicular to the stem, and rather violently too, with the flowers as far away from each other as possible. The stem forks and divides into three (flower stems erect, trichotomously branched) or four branches and divides further into smaller stems before flowering at the ends of branches. To my eye, this is a really odd arrangement. No doubt there is an ecological purpose for this. Maybe it is a particularly strong construction for such a windy area? 

   Eriogonum grande var. rubescens                                                                                                      S. Reeve

Small pom-pom flowers in varying shades of the palest pink-to-red bloom on the branched stems can bloom for several months. The terminal flowers are only about an inch across but pack a visual punch when massed. Although the tiny pink sepals of the lobed calyx look delicate, but they remain colorful for a long time. The color of the flower varies so much that it might be a good idea to shop for this plant when it is blooming to get the best shade for your garden. 

                                                        photo by Pete Veilleux, East Bay Wilds

If you garden for wildlife in California, Eriogonum species are some of the best plants for a wide array of native organisms. The small, easy to land on flowers, work for tiny insects and even larger bees, ants, syrphid flies, bee flies, wasps, butterflies, moths, and beetles. Butterflies that use this plant include Common Buckeye, Acmon Blue, Gray Hairstreak, Large White Skipper, Mournful Duskywing, Common Checkered Skipper. Moths use this plant too and include Brown Arches, Buckwheat Borer, and White-lined Sphinx. Acmon Blue uses the plant as a host plant as well as for nectar. Below is the larva of the common Gray Hairstreak butterfly consuming Eriogonum grande-rubescens as a host plant. The redder the flowers the pinker the larvae. Grasshoppers, beetles, and moth larvae consume all parts of this plant, including the roots. It really is remarkable how well utilized this plant is. Of course, birds and lizards will also be plentiful because of the wealth of insects on it, and for the little seeds.

       Gray Hairstreak larva                                                                          photo by Michael Schmidt 

      Eriogonum grande var. rubescens                                                                                                      S. Reeve

After a couple of years the plants seem to come out of the ground and will either die or you can cut them back. They don't seem to be long-lived but are readily replaced by seedlings. Try to leave the seedheads on if you want to feed the seed-eating birds. To keep it from seeding in the garden, cut off the flower at the base of the stem after the flower color fades. I don't do any maintenance on mine and let them spread. Deadheading the flowers before they form seeds will keep them blooming longer. They will not spread into areas where plants already exist. If you have them along a path they will spread further along the path as that is the available free space. You will also find them in the path, but they are easily pulled or given away. This plant is hardy to about 15 degrees F. I do not fertilize my plants, but I do mulch them. As you can see I have California poppies in with this plant and I like that because once the poppies are done the Eriogonum takes over. You will want to put this demure pretty native where you can see it and where you can see the nature that it brings.

Romneya x 'White Cloud'

Amazing photograph of Romneya coulteri by Aaron Landworth

Romneya x 'White Cloud' flower                                                                                                S. Reeve

Romneya coulteri may be the most iconic native California flower. Indeed, author of the book, The Wild Flowers of California, 1897, Mary Elizabeth Parsons, deemed it the, "Queen of California Flowers." I remember the first time I saw it, it was planted en masse along the side of the road in a hot and dry location. I started hyperventilating at the sheer spectacle of so many mammoth luminous crepey-petalled white flowers with a large boss of bright orange-yellow stamens. The easy access to so much pollen had sent the honey bees into a frenzy and flowers had a crowd of honeybees in each one. Ever since then I have wanted to grow this plant. The memory of it caused me to make it one of the first plants I put in the ground at my home in La Mesa, CA. Nothing teaches you more about a plant then growing it and I have learned so much since then. When it is blooming it is easy to see why it is called the, "fried egg" plant. It is also referred to as the Matilija Poppy as it is native to Matilija Canyon in the Ojai Valley and named after Chief Matilija of the Chumash tribe. Although well known by the native Indians, this plant was collected by Irish botanist Dr. Thomas Coulter in 1833, and the genus name came from his friend, astronomer, Dr. Thomas Romney Robinson.

There are two species in the Genus, Romneya coulteri and Romneya trichocalyx. These are Southern California natives with the range of Romneya trichocalyx extending into Baja, CA. Romneya trichocalyx is commonly called, "Hairy Matilija Poppy." It differs from Romneya coulteri in that it can be found at higher elevations, blooms for a shorter period of time, has smooth light brown seeds, and bristles on the sepals and stems. It is also smaller in stature and the leaves tend to be finer and narrower. Romneya coulteri has furry seed pods but has no prickles on the stems or leaves. 

Romneya coulteri reaches 8 feet or taller in my garden and the plant spreads widely and invasively by runners. These suckers or traveling roots are impressive in their size and scale. They are golden yellow and up to a half-inch in diameter, and they can vigorously travel for many feet before they pop up again. As boisterous as the roots are, you would think they would transplant easily, but this plant is particularly sensitive to having its roots disturbed. I have tried a number of times to share this plant with others, and even with the most healthy and sizeable rooted sections, it fails. 

Flowers of Romneya coulteri are up to 7-or more inches across and are said to be the largest flower of any native California plant. The buds are round and hold so much promise of gigantic flowers to come. The flower has 5-6 large crinkled white petals and is fragrant.

    Romney x 'White Cloud'                                                                                                                S. Reeve

Bristly Sepals of Romneya x 'White Cloud'                                                                                        S. Reeve

After growing both the straight species of Romneya coulteri and the cross between R. Coulteri and R. trichocalyx called, 'White Cloud', I much prefer the cultivar because it stays more compact, is not as inclined to travel, and has even larger flowers. Since it is a cultivated selection it must be propagated vegetatively, and root cuttings are commonly used. The key is to take them in the winter. The two species hybridize readily leading to Theodore Payne noticing the special qualities of one such hybrid in 1940, and naming it 'White Cloud'. The plant was almost lost until Tree of Life Nursery brought it back into cultivation in the '70s, and that is where I found it for my own garden.

     Romneya x 'White Cloud'                                                                                                         S. Reeve

Romneya x 'White Cloud' also has lovely bluish foliage that is the perfect color to complement the colors of the flower. I have noticed Romneya coulteri can have more greenish colored foliage, and I prefer the blue hues of 'White Cloud'.

     Romneya x 'White Cloud'                                                                                             S. Reeve

This plant blooms for over a month in the late spring. I garden for wildlife, and this plant is no exception to my other wildlife-attracting plants. Honey bees often crowd the flowers and the bees jostle each other vying for a larger share of the pollen. I have not noticed native bees on this plant, but it could be only the smaller native bees visit. 

    Romneya and honey bee.

One of the decidedly large drawbacks to the species Romneya coulteri is the exuberance with which it spreads. In one place I have it I continually have to pull out runners. You can slow these down by never watering this plant. It is tricky to get established, but once it figures out it likes where it is, stand back, and watch out! The second time I planted it was a much more appropriate place where it could spread to its heart's content. Luckily, if you don't have space, it can grow well in a pot. This plant likes hot dry sandy soil areas with good drainage and full sun. Plant it but disturb the roots as little as possible. You will know within a day-or-two whether the plant will take or not. This plant will decide right away if it will thrive or die. You may have to try it in a few different locations before it will settle in. Where I have a little shade, Romney coulteri can get rust on it after it flowers. Because of this I cut it down to the ground after it flowers. It comes back just fine. The furry brown oval seed pods contain many tiny golden seeds that germinate easily after a fire. The football-shaped seed pod peels open at the top when the seeds are ripe and looks very much like a miniature tiki torch. Native plant nurseries get good results from smoking pine needles for several minutes above sown flats of seeds. This plant is hardy in Zone 7-10 and goes dormant in the winter. 

     Seed Capsules of Romneya x 'White Cloud'                                                                                  S. Reeve